Temperatures plummeted abruptly yesterday evening as I quickly discovered when I went out at 10pm to find my wellies frozen together and my damp overalls turned into boards.
I came in to tell the Other Half to expect a frost in the morning, but was just in time to catch the end of the news with the weather forecaster predicting a band of cold, moist air moving in from the Atlantic and over the north of Scotland.
Cold, moist air meeting sub-zero temperatures could mean only one thing - snow.
And so it proved to be. There was a light dusting when I went out at 6.30am today but it’s been intensifying since and snow is falling constantly now.
We have about 6cm on the ground already and it’s the type of snow that locks together and forms a slippery surface.
Both roads next to the croft are very slippery, but needless to say we’ve not seen a gritter or snow plough. No surprises there!
We’ve not had anyone come off the road yet, but I did have to go to the rescue of the postie.
She drives a Ford Escort van, which I’m already familiar with as I had to help her when she had a brake fire on it last year.
This time, she came knocking at the door to ask if I could help as the gear linkage on her van appeared to have failed.
I went out with a torch and a quick inspection revealed the cause of the problem.
The Escort has a transverse engine with the gearbox on the left of the car. The gear linkage runs along the side of the engine (between it and the firewall), then kicks forward to the gearbox.
To take the linkage through the 90 degree bend, Ford uses a cup and ball arrangement, which had popped apart on the postie’s van.
Ford being Ford, this critical section of the linkage is not made of steel but of very cheap plastic. With repeated use the plastic cup and plastic ball wear down rapidly and no longer snap together.
I did manage to fit the cup and ball back together - not easy as there’s minimal room under the bonnet of an Escort and the heater pipes run just above the linkage so there’s a good chance of being burnt.
Then, with the postie having another 80 miles to go I suggest she should check with her boss before continuing.
He sent someone out with a piece of plastic to wedge into the cup and ball - the problem is quite common apparently - and sent her on her way.
I just hope the problem doesn’t repeat itself as it’s snowing hard and she hasn’t the tools to fix it herself if it goes again (I had to use very long-handled multigrips to reach the linkage).
It was the same when her brakes seized and caught fire last year. With the fire out and brake shoes freed, she was sent on her way again.
I could comment on the Post Office’s management, but I don’t think I need to…
Perhaps they might consider using some of the extra money they make by delivering unsolicited and unwanted junk mail (even to people who are TPS registered) as cited on a couple of occasions chez moi
( http://gowen.org ) to fund a better van for somebody who clearly has an extensive and potentially dangerous round! I hope she gets home safely.
Yes, sounds like modern management practice is thriving; do not care about the staff, just get on with it.
What happened to care and responsibility for those who work for you. This is emphasised in your winter weather, isn’t it?
Finally, maintenance of equipment etc is not a big money project that can be splashed across the TV/media outlets. So it is pushed to the background until something breaks.